


Three Times Kaidan had a Migraine

by Farashe



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: F/M, Headaches & Migraines
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-31
Updated: 2015-06-03
Packaged: 2018-04-02 02:53:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4043047
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Farashe/pseuds/Farashe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A brief scene, one for each game, of Kaidan dealing with his migraines with or without Shepard.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The First Time

Shepard took the elevator to the crew deck then strode toward Kaidan’s duty station. She wanted to discuss this Cerberus group with him. She, Garrus and Wrex had just returned from taking down another one of their outposts and she wanted the Lieutenant’s thoughts. Or that’s what she was telling herself anyway.

She frowned when she rounded the corner. He wasn’t there. He should be. Shepard saw every one of XO Pressly’s duty rosters, and if she paid special attention to one Lt. Alenko’s schedule, well, so what? He was a damn good officer. Which brought her back to the present. Where the hell was he?

Shepard finally shrugged. Maybe he’d gotten pulled into doing something elsewhere on the Normandy. Disappointment swirled through her, but she tried to ignore it. No, she would not pine for the Lieutenant. She was an Alliance Commander captaining a stealth frigate and a SPECTRE to boot! She had _work_ to do. She could talk to him later. For now, she would go talk to Liara about that Prothean data disc they’d picked up yesterday and see if the asari archaeologist had gleaned any of its secrets yet.

As she walked toward the med bay, she was surprised to see that the lights inside were dimmed. When she walked through the doors, she was even more surprised to see Kaidan stretched out on one of the beds, a forearm draped over his eyes. He wasn’t asleep though; she could tell from the tension in his muscles. In fact, he looked like he was in pain. He wasn’t hurt was he? Shepard threw a questioning glance at Doctor Chakwas hoping she didn’t look as worried as she suddenly felt.

The doctor only put a finger to her lips then mouthed “migraine”.

Oh. Shepard mentally kicked herself. She knew Kaidan was an L2 and Doctor Chakwas had told her he suffered migraines as a result, but she had forgotten. He was always so in control and ready to work that she hadn’t really believed he’d ever be at less than his best. Shame at forgetting and concern for him combined in her, and she knew she had to do something for him. 

She walked softly over to his bed and gently touched his shoulder. “Kaidan?” she murmured. She felt him wince. “I was thinking this isn’t the best place for you right now,” she told him. His arm slid away from his face and one of his eyes cracked open slightly.

“Commander? What do you…?” he cut himself off with a wince.

“Come on, Lieutenant.” She kept her voice low, but put a hint of command into it. “We’re going to put you someplace where you can get some real dark and quiet.” She slid an arm under his shoulders and pulled him up to a sitting position.

He swung his legs over the edge of the bunk and groaned as he stood up. Shepard took his arm and led him from the med bay. Once the door opened though, he stopped moving and screwed his eyes shut at the sudden onslaught of bright lights.

“Alright, Kaidan,” she said while taking a firmer grip on his arm. “You keep your eyes shut, and I’ll lead you.” Slowly they made their way the short distance from the med bay to the captain’s cabin. The lights flared on when they entered, but Shepard reached for the panel and turned them off again, plunging them into near-total darkness.

Sensing the change in light, Kaidan’s eyes fluttered open, and he sighed softly in relief. Shepard ushered him toward her bed, but he froze when they reached it.

“Shepard, I can’t… It isn’t appropriate for me to…”

“Screw that. You need rest Kaidan, and this is the best place. You have dark and quiet and no one will barge in here to disturb you. Now lay your ass down and work on feeling better, okay?” With that she put both her hands on his shoulder and pushed him down onto the bed. He stopped resisting and just stretched himself out, burying his face in her pillow.

Shepard smiled in triumph and left him alone.

A few hours later, she tiptoed into the cabin to retrieve a datapad, careful to make as little noise as possible. Once she’d gathered the pad, she paused and looked at the man that still lay in her bed. His muscles had relaxed and his breathing was deep and even. Asleep. She smiled fondly at him then crouched down at the edge of the bed.

Before she could talk herself out of it, she smoothed a stray lock of hair from his forehead then placed a gentle kiss to his temple. She could have sworn she saw a small smile curl his lips as he slept, but she didn’t let herself linger any longer. She had promised he’d be undisturbed so she stood and left before she could break that promise herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh hey! Mass Effect! I've been slowly making my way through the trilogy for the umpteenth time (while also working on DA:I and other games. It's slow going). Anyway, as a migraine sufferer myself, I've always felt for poor Kaidan. I did wish the games actually did more than just mention his migraines. Like, does he ever have to sit out a mission because of them? I'm sure he'd hate that.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed!


	2. Pulled Hard to Port

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Horizon, while Kaidan is travelling back to Alliance space...

Oh no. Kaidan could sense the migraine coming on like the oppressive feel of a building thunderstorm. It wouldn’t be long before the lightning began to strike.

_Why now? Why did this have to happen when I’m stuck on a transport cruiser among a crew I don’t know?_ He had hoped his trip home from Horizon would be uneventful; the universe owed it to him after how...exciting that posting had turned out. Apparently his wishes weren’t being granted right now.

_I wished for her to be alive. And she is._

Kaidan shook his head. He couldn’t think about that now. It would only make his head hurt worse. Instead he focused on getting to his sleeping berth as quickly as possible. Thankfully, he knew a couple of the other officers he bunked with had odd-hours duty shifts so they would be sleeping, meaning the cabin should be quiet.

Once there, he let himself collapse forward and focused all his energy on enduring the ordeal. The soft sounds of breathing in a nearby bunk seemed too loud, but at least it was dark. Pain drilled into his brain so intensely that his muscles seized up, tense and ready to fight a threat that wasn’t there while his stomach bubbled with nausea. He pulled his pillow over his head to block out the rest of the world and tried to think of something pleasant to counteract the pain in his head.

_The light touch of fingers against his face, the feeling of soft lips pressed gently to his temple._ No, not that memory. It was pleasant, yes, but… He felt his heart seize with a different pain than the kind stabbing through his head. He tried to bury the memory of Shepard tucking him into her own bunk on the Normandy. That migraine had been filled with just as much agony as this one, but somehow the memory was still a sweet one, knowing she cared.

A more immediate memory intruded. Seeing Shepard standing in front of him on Horizon, pulling her into his arms...realizing the rumors had been right. She was with Cerberus. Shepard would never work for Cerberus. And that meant that it wasn’t really her anymore, was it? And yet…

Soon enough the pain in his head blocked out any other thoughts, and he was almost grateful. Or he would have been if he’d been able to think past the agony. Physical pain was far easier to move past than the emotional tempest he had faced.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's short and sweet. Poor Kaidan. He goes through so much...
> 
> I hope you enjoyed!


	3. Shifting Tactics

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kaidan is helping out Tali when the migraine hits. Shepard is looking for a diversion.

Lights flashed on the console, and Kaidan groaned as sudden pain lanced through his brain. Dammit.

“Are you ok, Kaidan?” Tali asked seeing his sudden wince. He’d volunteered to help her with some engine maintenance.

Kaidan powered down his omni-tool and grimaced. “Sorry, Tali,” he got out through gritted teeth. “Migraine. I hate to bail, but I think I have to leave this to you.”

“Of course, Kaidan,” she said with quiet sympathy. “I’ll manage on my own. Go rest.” The quarian patted him on the shoulder then gave him a little shove toward the door.

Kaidan made it to the elevator and up to Shepard’s cabin without running into anyone for which he was grateful. Going through the motions of military courtesy and elevator small talk was agonizing when your head felt like a melon someone had decided to take an axe to. Once through her cabin door, he killed the lights and burrowed into the bed on the side closest to the fish tank, Shepard’s side.

Each inhale was infused with her scent, and that was probably the most comforting thing he had ever experienced for his migraines. He closed his eyes and tried to focus on his breathing and her smell in an effort to give himself some relief.

\---

Shepard made her way up to her cabin looking forward to a break, maybe a long hot shower. She’d been arguing with the Council about resources being routed to the Crucible then she’d gone down to the shuttle bay to see if James was available for a sparring match. He hadn’t been, which was a pity. Nothing like two people trying to beat the crap out of each other to work off some stress. It was almost as good as sex that way. And with Kaidan busy helping Tali in engineering, it looked like she was being disappointed on all fronts today.

She stepped into her cabin and was momentarily surprised when the lights didn’t automatically come on. Then she saw a large lump on the bed and smiled. Kaidan must have finished up with Tali early and decided on a nap. The smile turned a bit wicked. Perhaps she could indulge in her preferred method of stress relief after all.

She moved quietly toward the bed then crouched next to Kaidan’s prone form, strategizing in her mind about how to begin her assault. She trailed a hand up his muscled arm, her touch feather light. But then she paused part way up his bicep. The muscles were taut, already tensed. She began to frown and peered into his face. His eyes were closed but there were furrows in his brow. So he wasn’t asleep, he was in pain. A migraine. Her gaze turned tender and sympathetic.

She moved her hand to his face and began smoothing the lines of pain with gentle fingers. He cracked his eyes open.

“Shepard,” he murmured barely audible.

“Shhh,” she whispered with a finger to his lips. Then she took off her boots. “Can you sit up for a moment?” she asked, keeping her voice soft. He looked skeptical but he pushed himself into a half-sitting position. Shepard slipped into the bed behind him resting her back against the headboard, and Kaidan lay back down, this time with his head in her lap. She put her fingers to his temples and began massaging them in slow, gentle circles.

“Mmmmm,” Kaidan murmured, eyes closed. Her fingers didn’t chase away the pain, but they gave him a focus, something pleasant. Occasionally she would move her fingers to stroke his hair and his forehead, the edge of an earlobe or the curve of his lips, but the touches weren’t meant to be erotic, just comforting.

Slowly her fingers lulled him into a trance. He wasn’t sure how much time passed in that state, and he didn’t even notice when he eventually began to slip into sleep.

Some time later he woke, his migraine gone. He smiled in relief amazed and grateful that it had passed so quickly. He began to move, but stopped when he realized his pillow was in actuality a thigh. Shepard was still with him.

He levered himself up carefully and turned to look at her. She had fallen asleep still sitting up against the headboard. Her chin rested against her chest and her arms lay limp on either side of her. It did not look like a comfortable way to rest especially considering her leg had to have fallen asleep with Kaidan’s head resting there for so long.

He grasped her chin gently so he could raise her face high enough for him to kiss her. Her eyes fluttered open when their lips touched.

“Feeling better?” she asked in a sleepy voice when he broke away.

“Much,” he replied then kissed her again, this time with far more passion.

“Mmmm, I can tell,” she murmured when they finally paused for breath. “You know, I came up here looking to take a shower. Care to join?” Her words were punctuated with gasps as Kaidan moved his lips along the line of her jaw and down the column of her throat.

“I’d like that.”

Later as they lay back on the bed, limbs entwined, Kaidan turned his face to hers and pressed their foreheads together. “Shepard, thank you.”

She didn’t ask what for, she only smiled that brilliant smile that seemed reserved for him. “You’re welcome, Kaidan. Anytime.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this last one! Thanks for reading!


End file.
